BURLINGTON, Vt. - The
University of Vermont shot 57.8 percent from the floor and had five players in
double figures to defeat the Canisius men's basketball team 87-79 at the
Patrick Gymnasium in a Ramada WorldWide BracketBusters game on Saturday
afternoon. With the loss, Canisius falls to 17-11 on the season.

"We
just didn't guard them and they made shots," Canisius head coach Jim Baron said. "We did a poor job
defensively - plain and simple. We have to guard, and we have to have some guys
make some plays on the defensive end of the floor. You can't let good teams
like that shoot better than 55 percent from the field and think you're going to
be able to win."

Canisius
held a 10-8 lead after a layup from Manhertz before the Catamounts heated up
from behind the arc. Vermont scored eight straight points to go up 16-10 and
drained four of its first five 3-pointers in the early going. The Griffs used
3-pointers from Hymes on back-to-back possessions to take a 23-22 lead with
just over seven minutes left in the half. The Griffs extended that to a 10-2
run, going up 27-24 on a jumper from Washington. Vermont scored 11 straight
points and closed the half on a 14-3 run to take a 38-30 lead into the locker
room.

Vermont
created some separation with a six-point spurt, getting three-point plays from
Luke Apfeld and Trey Blue, to go up 53-40. Canisius responded with five quick
points, getting a 3-pointer from Hymes and a layup from Washington to get
within eight. Vermont extended the lead to as many as 15 points, going up 68-53
after a 3-pointer from Sandro Carissimo with 7:35 left. The Griffs came back with
an 8-2 run, getting a 3-pointer and drunk from Washington along with a
3-pointer from Baron to make it 70-61.

Vermont
(18-9) wouldn't let the Griffs back into the game as Ethan O'Day capped a
stretch where he scored 10 of the Catamounts 14 points with two free throws to
make it a 13-point game. Canisius made a late rally, using a 10-2 run to get
within five at 76-71 after a 3-pointer from Sosa with 1:13 left. Vermont made
12 free throws in the final 90 seconds to put the game away.

O'Day
led Vermont with 22 points while Clancy Rugg and Blue each had 17 points. Apfeld scored 14 points and Carissimo had 10 points. Vermont went
27-of-31 from the free-throw line on the day and shot 66.7 percent from the
floor in the second half.

Canisius
returns to the Koessler Athletic Center to wrap up the regular season next
weekend. The Golden Griffins host Saint Peter's University on Thursday night.
The ESPN3 broadcast is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Notes: This was the 18th all-time meeting between
Canisius and Vermont on the hardwood, with the Griffs leading the series 16-2...
Saturday's game in Burlington was the first meeting between these two schools
in men's basketball since Jan. 28, 1991... Canisius saw its record move to 5-3
all-time in BracketBuster games, with all three of those losses (at Coastal
Carolina, at Boston University and at Vermont) coming on the road... Vermont's
27-for-31 effort from the free-throw line in the game matched season highs for
a Canisius opponent this season - Stony Brook also went 27-for-31 from the
free-throw line against the Griffs Nov. 24... Washington's 29 points marked the
fifth time this season and the 14th time in his career where he has scored 20
or more points in a game... Washington's four steals on Saturday left him one shy
of tying his career high of five, which he accomplished at James Madison Nov.
13, 2011, in his first career game as a Griff... Hymes' 15 points gives him
double figures in the scoring column 43 times in his career and leaves him
three points shy of joining the Canisius 1,000 Point Club... Manhertz had
recorded 10 or more rebounds in a game 12 times this season and 21 times in his
career.